Kineto-optical scanner for television



w. A. R. MALM 2,543,463

KINETO-OPTIAL SCANNER FOR TELVISION Original Filed April l5, 1944 Patented Feb. 27, 1951 KINETO-OPTICAL SCANNER FOR TELEVISION William A. R. Malin, New Orleans, La.

Original application April 15, 1944, Serial No.

Divided and this application October 27, 1945, Serial No. 625,034

1 Claim.

This invention relates to methods and means for producing and controlling scanning light beams in the transmitter of a television system and the like.

Object scanning at the transmitter and image scanning at the receiver have both been accomplished by electronic and mechanical means. The electronic devices were eicient but expensive, while the mechanical devices proposed heretofore were inexpensive but inelcient and some were impractical.

An object of this invention is to provide practical means for scanning an object for lefficient transmission of a television image.

Other objects of this invention will appear hereinafter.

The views in the drawing are entirely sectional,

to facilitate illustration of the optical devices.

vision camera, embodying the related devices for scanning a television object for the transmission of television images. The parallel scanning light beam is shown as proportionately oversized, as it is quite obvious that high quality picture detail can be obtained only when said parallel beam of light has an extremely small crosssectional area.

Figure 2 is a horizontal plane section of said television camera.

Description of the devices shown in the drawing Will disclose their operation.

2l) represents an object being scanned by a parallel light beam 2 I. The elective focus of the lens assembly 22 and 23 determines the size of the eld of view being scanned.

Cylindrical lens 24 converges, in a horizontal plane, all of the rays intercepted by lens assembly 22 and 23.

Prismatic lens 25 is a polyhedron with a concentric circular hole, Which rotates in a horizontal plane and at a constant speed. Its speed must be consistent with the number of polygonal sides of the polyhedron, image scanning line and frame frequencies, and the practical limits of rotational devices.

Cylindrical lens 26 converges, in a vertical plane, all of the rays horizontally deected by rotating prismatic lens 25.

Prismatic lens 21 is a polyhedron with a concentric circular hole, which rotates in a vertical plane and at a constant speed. -Its speed must be consistent with the number of polygonal sides of Ithe polyhedron, image scanning line and frame frequencies, and the practical 1imits of rotational devices.

The speed of rotation of prismatic lenses 25 and 21 increases with the required number of image scanning lines and frames per second, and varies inversely as the number of polygonal sides.

The means for rotating and synchronizing prismatic lenses 25 and 21 are not shown in the drawing, for simplicity, as they are conventional devices.

The concentric circular hole in prismatic lenses 25 and 21 provides means for increasing the total deflection of the beams refracted by said prismatic lenses, to compensate for reduced refraction in the polyhedron caused by increasing the number of polygonal sides in order to obtain a rotational speed within practical limits and commensurate with present day standards of line and frame frequencies. Experiments have demonstrated that the angle of total deflection of the scanning beam within the polyhedron varies inversely as the diameter of the concentric circular hole.

The aperture in plate 28, by virtue of the related positions of prismatic lenses 25 and 21, allows only the rays from the spot of the object which is being scanned at each instant to enter the photo-electric cell symbolized by 29.

Photo-electric cell 29 converts the light ray` impulses passing through aperture in plate 28 into electrical impulses which may be conducted or radiated by means of conventional wire or radio devices to one or more television receivers synchronized with the described devices.

A suitable lilter, placed between the object 20 and lens assembly 22 and 23, would make the devices shown in the'drawing sensitive to infrared or ultra-violet rays. as may be required. However, the refractive devices would transmit infra-red or ultra-violet rays more eiilciently if they were made of polystyrene or similar plastic material.

The` infra-red or ultra-violet sensitivity of photo-electric cell 29 would be increased, if at least a portion of the bulb through which the rayspass was made of polystyrene or similar plastic material.

This invention may have other embodiments without departing from its spirit.

This application is a division of my pending application, Serial No. 531,205, filed April 15, 1944.

What is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent, is as follows;

In a television image transmitter and the like, means for horizontally and vertically scanning an object; comprising sn achromatic lens 'assembly for intercepting a parallel beamof light "j e i light beam, an aperture plate which by virtue of vl0 the successive related positions of `said .horizontally and vertically rotating prisrnatic lenses "alflows only the light within said light beam radiated from each successive object surface area being scanned to convey modulating vimpulses toa .215

photo-electric cell.

WILLIAM A. R. MALM.

4 REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date `2,085,594 Leventhal June 29, 1937 '2,139,869 Traub Dec. 13, 1938 2,157,463 Walton May 9, 1939 k2,158,990 Van Okolicsanyi May 16, 1939 '2,213g30'7 Elliott Sept. 3, 1940 2,222,937 Dimmck NOV. 26, 1940 

